-
Brooke Pryor
LOS ANGELES — Asked how he would assess quarterback Aaron Rodgers’ two-interception, one-touchdown performance in the Pittsburgh Steelers’ 25-10 loss to the Los Angeles Chargers on Sunday night, coach Mike Tomlin frowned as he answered with a perturbed stare — and a question.
“How would you?” Tomlin said. “Next.”
Rodgers turned in the worst performance of his nine-game Steelers career, and his 51.6% completion percentage was his lowest in a game over the past five seasons.
Tomlin didn’t offer an explanation for Rodgers’ off night, either.
“We as an offensive collective were off today, and certainly, he’s a component of that,” Tomlin said. “I’ll let him speak for himself, but we certainly got to be better. Didn’t feel like they did anything unanticipated, but certainly, they outperformed us, particularly in possession-down play.”
Rodgers was frank in his self-evaluation.
“This was not my best performance,” he said. “I got to play better than this for us to win. Whatever it takes … if it’s better checks, if it’s better throws, whatever it is, I got to play better. I will. … We got to play better on offense, for sure. But this is part of the season. There’s ebbs and flows, there’s ups and downs, and we can’t ride the wave.”
Playing in what could be the 41-year-old California native’s final game in his home state, Rodgers struggled from the Steelers’ first series when, after two short completions to running back Jaylen Warren and wide receiver Calvin Austin, he scrambled to avoid pressure and missed Austin on third down. That marked the first of nine consecutive third downs the Steelers failed to convert until they finally converted two in garbage time en route to a late touchdown.
Rodgers finished 16-of-31 passing for 161 yards.
“A lot of stuff wasn’t working,” Rodgers said. “We were bad on third down. I was just a little bit off. I missed DK [Metcalf] early. Could have been a big play. … I missed some throws for sure. And then we weren’t getting guys open … times the guys were open, I missed some throws I usually make.”
Rodgers connected with Metcalf on just 3 of 7 targets for 35 yards, and his first interception came as he tried to hit Metcalf late in the second quarter. Instead, the ball sailed high over Metcalf and into the arms of Chargers rookie RJ Mickens.
Rodgers was 0-of-5 on passes of at least 15 yards down the field, including that one. He was also sacked three times, including by Khalil Mack for a safety to end the Steelers’ third drive of the game.
“I didn’t really see anybody open, and I felt like when I stepped up, I saw Mack, and I didn’t realize that he had kind of lost touch with Troy [Fautanu],” Rodgers said of the safety. “I should have thrown the ball on somebody’s feet there.”
Rodgers responded with a better drive on the Steelers’ next possession when he connected with Metcalf for a 19-yard gain, a 15-yard completion to Darnell Washington and a 9-yard gain to tight end Pat Freiermuth. But the drive stalled just beyond the red zone, thanks to a holding penalty on Fautanu and an overturned ruling on what appeared to be a catch by Jonnu Smith on a high, off-target ball from Rodgers. Chris Boswell then missed a 45-yard field goal attempt to give the Steelers nothing to show for the 52-yard drive.
The offense came up empty again in the fourth quarter when Pittsburgh’s drive ended with a turnover on downs as Rodgers tried to force the ball to Metcalf in the end zone on fourth down. Instead of a score to make it a one-possession game, the ball was knocked down, and the Chargers responded with a 90-yard touchdown drive to take a 22-3 lead and seal the win.
“I probably should have thrown it the other side,” Rodgers said of the fourth-down throw to Metcalf. “He was doubled. I should have thrown it more back shoulder or maybe work the other side.”
Despite all the miscues and missed opportunities, Tomlin still expressed a belief that his team, which saw its lead over the Baltimore Ravens in the AFC North shrink to one game, would move forward from its third loss in four weeks.
“I’m not lacking confidence,” Tomlin said. “I don’t need a pat on the back. We stunk it up tonight. We’ll be back.”
ESPN Research contributed to this report.